


Natural

by katierosefun



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-19
Updated: 2016-01-19
Packaged: 2018-05-15 01:08:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5766169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katierosefun/pseuds/katierosefun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Glove,” Colin said, stunned. He looked up at Daisy and Coulson, confused. “I was thinking about making a flower. I don’t…know how it works. Not really.” Then, his gaze skirted down to Coulson. More specifically, the gap where Coulson’s hand should have been. </p><p>In a small voice, Colin asked, “Would you like this?” </p><p>Daisy turned to Coulson, not knowing what to expect. Maybe a polite smile, or at least a dazed one – but instead, Coulson took it silently, his head bowed and his eyes shining.</p><p>(Daisy and Coulson find an Inhuman boy. Results are interesting.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Natural

_**Natural** _

“He’s just a little boy,” the woman said in a hushed tone. One of her hands was pressed against the door, the other hanging limply at her side. “And I’m not too sure what you people think you’re going to get out of him. We’ve tried every other therapist or doctor, and, well…” She cast a doubtful look at Daisy and Coulson. “You’ll find that he can sometimes act a bit…eccentric.”

Daisy pressed her lips into what she hoped was a convincing-enough smile. (Or at least, a dry smile.) “We’ve heard that often enough,” she replied, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. At the same time, she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “But that’s alright.”

The woman only let out a soft sigh. Then, pushing open the door, she called softly, “Colin? Cols, there’s some nice people to see you.”

Daisy peeked inside, and after a brief moment of looking around the room (small, blue walls. Lots of bookshelves, a small desk, a medium-sized bed with blue and green plaid covers. A potted plant sitting on the windowsill, a pretty rug sitting in front of the bed. A large dresser with half-open drawers) before letting her eyes land on a small, pale boy sitting on the floor.

“Cols?” the woman called again, her voice forcibly light and cheery. “Come on, put down the book.”

The boy lifted his head, his green eyes flashing under the dim lights of his room. Daisy hadn’t been able to tell before, but now she could see a thick novel in his small hands. Narrowing her eyes at the cover, she was able to make out the title – _Grimms’ Fairytales._

Daisy felt her lips twitch into a smile. She wasn’t one for reading when she was a kid, mostly because she was more interested in stirring trouble instead of sitting around all day, but she had one foster mom who liked to tell fairy tales while she was making dinner. (Of course, that foster mom ended up having a drinking problem in the night. It was only in the evenings would be when she was actually tolerable.)

“Come on,” the woman repeated, a bit tiredly this time. “Give me your book; talk to the nice doctors.”

“It’s okay,” Coulson said, shooting her a brief, reassuring smile. “We don’t mind if Colin wants to keep his book.”

The woman sighed again. “I’ll be downstairs if you two need anything,” she said, and with that, she disappeared from the door. Daisy turned back around to look down at Colin. The boy still had _Grimms’ Fairytales_ in his lap, and though the woman had left the room, he didn’t acknowledge Daisy nor Coulson.

Coulson flicked a look at Daisy, as though to say, _you should talk first._

Daisy didn’t mind. She was usually better at talking to kids with powers, anyways.

“What story are you reading?” Daisy asked, crouching down next to Colin.

He didn’t bother looking up, but he replied, “ _Rapunzel_.”

“Rapunzel?” Daisy asked, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Colin’s eyes flashed up to Daisy’s, his stormy eyes fixed into a dark glare. “It’s okay for me to read it,” he said defensively.

“I never said it wasn’t,” Daisy responded quickly. “No, it’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with you reading _Rapunzel_.” She said this seriously, and despite the fact she kept her smile on her face, she couldn’t help but feel the slightest stab of sympathy for the little boy. Obviously, he hadn’t had the best experiences on his own. Then again, Daisy didn’t exactly have the best childhood either. So it’d be her job to make sure this kid would get a better future.

“What’s your favorite part in _Rapunzel_?” Daisy asked, crossing her legs. She noticed how Colin’s eyes seemed to narrow a little in suspicion – but after a grudging nod, he put the book down on his lap.

“I like the ending the best,” he said decidedly.

“The ending?”

Colin looked at Daisy like she had grown an extra head. “The ending,” he said slowly. “When Rapunzel and the prince go back to the kingdom. And they live happily ever after. And Rapunzel’s hair grows back. And the prince isn’t blind anymore. And Rapunzel might have even been able to see her parents again.” His voice got caught for a second, and though the moment vanished as quickly as it came, Daisy didn’t miss the bitterness in Colin’s eyes. She knew that bitterness too well – she had seen it in her own eyes growing up.

 _Give him a chance,_ Daisy thought to herself. _Give him the chance no one else gave you when you were little._

As neutrally as possible, Daisy said, “I always really liked the magic in the fairytales.”

Colin looked up. “The magic?”

Daisy shrugged her shoulders. “You know – fairies. Good versus bad. Bippity-boppity-boo stuff.” She look at Colin in the eye. He was biting down on his lip now, and Daisy could practically hear the little boy’s thoughts whirring in his head. Daisy waited for one second – then two – and in a soft voice, she said slowly, “I don’t really think magic – or anything else related to fairytales – is all that bad.”

Colin’s book slipped to the ground. Cheeks flushed and eyes wide, he breathed, “Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure,” Daisy responded.

Colin pressed his lips together. His eyes darting to the door, he whispered, “Can you keep a secret?”

“Sure.”

Colin started to stand up – but then he looked at Coulson, his eyebrows furrowed together in bewilderment. Daisy quickly smiled, saying, “It’s okay. He knows how to keep a secret, too.” ( _Lots of secrets,_ Daisy added silently.)

Colin waited another moment – but with a small nod, he continued, “I think I can…” His voice lowered. “I think I can _change_ things.” His eyes skirted around the room again, and bending down by his bed, he dug out a pair of socks. His hands were shaking as he whispered, “Just watch.”

So Daisy and Coulson watched.

Colin held the socks in his hands. He rubbed his thumbs over them, and sucking in a sharp breath, he pulled his hands away to reveal a small –

“Glove,” Colin said, stunned. He looked up at Daisy and Coulson, confused. “I was thinking about making a flower. I don’t…know how it works. Not really.” Then, his gaze skirted down to Coulson. More specifically, the gap where Coulson’s hand should have been.

In a small voice, Colin asked, “Would you like this?”

Daisy turned to Coulson, not knowing what to expect. Maybe a polite smile, or at least a dazed one – but instead, Coulson took it silently, his head bowed and his eyes shining.

\--

“So he takes inanimate objects and turn them into something else,” Daisy said, starting up the car. It was a rented SUV – one that smelled like old McDonald’s and armpit sweat, but it was only for a day. “And it seems like Colin’s not in any immediate danger. We’ll get him out, though – and soon. We’ll just need to fill in the paperwork for the woman taking care of him right now…” Her voice drifted. There was a silence on the other end.

“Coulson?”

Daisy turned to see Coulson jerking his head up from the window. “Yeah?”

Daisy looked at him, concerned. “Are you okay? You were out of it.”

“I’m fine.”

Daisy turned off the ignition. The car stopped rumbling and for a while, the two sat in a ringing state of quiet. “Does this have something to do with the glove?” she asked at last. “Because I don’t think Colin meant it in a bad way –”

Coulson blinked. “I’m not upset about that,” he said, frowning. “I’m not upset at all.”

“Really? Because you were quiet. And I thought that maybe –”

“It’s okay. Really.” Coulson stared down at the glove in his hand. Letting out a long breath, he asked, “We’ve got a long day ahead of us, don’t we?”

“Something like that,” Daisy replied, starting the car up again. She carefully pulled out of the parking lot – and in the next second, they were driving down the highway. She rolled down the windows, savoring in the way the cold wind whipped her short hair across her cheeks and filled the car up with a cleaner, fresher smell (despite the never-ending stream of cars heading down the opposite side of the highway. But still. It was better than armpit sweat).

And though it was probably a bad idea, Daisy’s eyes left the road and focused on Coulson.

They didn’t say anything for the rest of the drive.

\--

Daisy found Coulson in his office later that night. He had his hand fastened on now, though there was no glove to cover up the cybernetic parts. Daisy knew that there were other people working on covering up the arm with some kind of metal plating – and while that was coming along, she knew that Coulson would just have to depend on gloves for now.

The glove that Colin had (made? Created?) transformed was sitting on Coulson’s desk. Coulson didn’t seem to notice Daisy walking into the room until she was sitting right in front of him.

“Filled out the paper work,” Daisy said, crossing her legs. “Colin’s been pretty ecstatic. He actually turned one of the towels into an ornamental rug. It was a nice rug, though, and Colin’s beginning to wish that he could make it fly.” She was glad to hear Coulson laugh. It was a short one, but as far as Daisy was concerned, it counted.

“Are you going to try this on?” Daisy asked, reaching across the desk. She picked up the glove and slid her hand into it. Naturally, it was a little big for her – there was still some wiggle room for her fingers and for the rest of her hand, for that matter. The glove provided immediate warmth, though – warmth and protection, which she supposed was the point. Thoughtful, too.

“I’m not sure if I should,” Coulson answered.

Daisy lifted her head. Coulson was flexing his hand now, his eyes not focused on her but the works in his joints. Daisy felt her heart soften. She knew that Coulson was still trying to get used to his hand. She also knew that he didn’t hold a grudge against Mack for cutting it off – it was either lose a hand or lose his life – but at the same time, she had the feeling that the transition was still difficult. There were still times when Daisy would see Coulson’s face waver with pain that wasn’t even there – and other times, he’d reach for something just to remember that he was unable to.

In a small voice, Daisy said, “Let me.”

Coulson didn’t argue.

Daisy walked around the desk. She slipped the glove away from her hand and let it dangle from her fingertips for one moment – then two. It was delicately made, too. Daisy wasn’t sure if it was Colin who had actually made it – for all she knew, maybe there was another glove somewhere on the other side of the world that had gone missing and shown up in Colin’s hands.

Well. She wouldn’t bother asking.

Gently, Daisy lifted Coulson’s arm. She could feel where the cybernetic hand came to a stop – she could feel the thrum in the hand, and though it could have just been her imagination, Daisy could have sworn it matched with Coulson’s pulse.

Coulson’s skin felt warm as Daisy tugged the glove over his hand, but she couldn’t be too sure. She slipped her hands away and after a pause, she asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Daisy waited five heartbeats before hearing an equally quiet, “No.” Coulson was flexing his fingers, the look on his face practically mournful. “I’m never going to be able to get used to this,” he said almost decidedly. “I keep trying, but it’s not clicking in yet.”

“It’s only been a few months, Phil,” Daisy said, leaning against the desk. “This is…natural.” _I think,_ she felt like adding.

“There’s a reason why I’ve been going through the gloves so quickly.”

“Because you don’t want them?”

“Because I can’t get used to them. It doesn’t _feel_ natural.”

Daisy pressed her lips together. Lowering her gaze to the ground, she murmured, “When I first got my powers…” She scuffed her shoe against the ground. “You remember what I was like. I thought I was a monster, didn’t I? I didn’t think _I_ was natural.”

“That’s not true,” Coulson said quickly, and Daisy felt warmth spread to her chest at the sudden defensiveness in his voice.

“I know it’s not true,” Daisy replied. “But at the time, I didn’t.” She started to walk away from the desk. “Concentrate on something that makes you know that you’re you. That always helps.”

It wasn’t until Daisy was at the door did Coulson call after her, “Like what?”

Daisy gave Coulson a small smile. “Let’s start with what’s in front of you.” She placed a hand over the doorknob. Then, her heartbeat quickening, she added almost teasingly, “I’ll be in my room if you need me.”

**Author's Note:**

> **Made for Skoulson RomFest 2k16.


End file.
